Officially Overdue

This is my last prego picture (taken at 40 weeks/2 days) because one way or another by this Wednesday our little guy will be here. I need to update my poll because I think he is going to pass all the dates (sorry Dad V, Mom, and Teecy--they all had birthdays that were on the poll). We have nested every weekend since my 35th week. I really don't think there is more I can do to get ready! Today I actually washed/dried/packed all the clothes I wanted to take to goodwill. I've vacuumed my house so many times in the last month I can't count and every weekend I do a frig purging to make room for the meals my sweet friends have volunteered to bring over. We put together the bouncy seat, diaper pail, pack-n-play, and gym and the batteries are in place. I even scattered some of these items in different rooms since I really don't know where I'll be using them. I've read so many baby books that I think I'm more confused than ever, but we'll figure it out. My bag & peanut's have been packed for a month and I've taken his little outfits from the bag and "played" with them a million times. I've started stocking up in ridiculous quantities on items such as paper towels, toilet paper and dish detergent like we will never be able to go to grocery store again. It's so funny how nervous energy can make you do crazy things! I know that no matter how much we nest/prepare that real life experience is going to be the best education we will receive.

So, in two days we will check into the hospital and by Wednesday night our little son will be in our arms! It is such a surreal feeling. I think I've said to my hubby 50 times this weekend, "can you believe on Wednesday or sooner we'll meet our son!!?!?!" And, then I go on to probe him to share his deepest feelings on the matter:). We are so overjoyed, scared out of our minds, giddy, nervous, excited and just sort of oblivious to what having a baby will really be like. Over the last 40 1/2 weeks I've felt like I've been preparing for the biggest exam of my life and it will be time to use every bit of advice and book knowledge on Wednesday. Except this exam is one that will last a lifetime. I'm sure we will make our fair share of mistakes along the way, but thankfully we will get many second chances as we stumble through this new thing called parenthood. And, it is all worth it to have our sweet little boy in our lives. Thank you all for keeping us in your prayers. We will be so excited to introduce you to our little boy in a few days!!

Fully roasted, but no peanut

Well, I just had my 40th week check up today and we are a little sad. No new progress in the south, so I have an induction scheduled for next Wednesday, November 7th. We would check in Tuesday night and by Wednesday night peanut will have a real name! There is a 50/50 chance for a C-section with an induction, so we are praying for peanut to arrive on his own. Here lately every Friday when we go out we say, "this is probably our last date night without a baby" and every Friday night we are wrong! So, this Friday night we KNOW it will be the last one before peanut arrives.
We will keep everyone posted if anything new progresses. We have one more doctor's appt on Monday to check everything out so we'll see how that goes. I'll plan to bring my laptop to the hospital to share the good news with pictures of our sweet little guy.
Thanks for your prayers blogger fans!

And Away We Grow!!

I am now 38 weeks and 2 days! The top picture is my 38th week and the bottom is my 37th...I've dropped! This pregnancy has flown by in some ways and poked by in others. All in all, it has been a fun pregnancy and I have no complaints. The sleeping issue has finally be resolved since I discovered our couch is a much better option for sleeping these days than the bed. If I had my guess I'd say peanut will arrive before his due date, but we'll see! We finally got the carseat in yesterday and it was our last big thing to accomplish. We still need to assemble the diaper pail thing, but at least it's not essential. I cannot believe all the items you need for something so tiny! I know the real fact of the matter is that 1/2 the things are for the parents use. Thank goodness for new inventions to help with sleeping, diaper smells and feeding!

We are getting very excited to meet our little boy for the first time. We cannot wait to see his little face and hold him. It's such a surreal feeling knowing that he'll be here within days or at least not passed Nov. 10 which is the latest they'll let us go. We appreciate all the prayers and will keep you posted with this little guy decides to meet the world!

Priceless...

A Labor of Love

Memaw and I weeks after her diagnosis


Anyone who knows me at all, knows the deep relationship my grandmother (Memaw) and I shared throughout my life. Memaw was a constant in my life amid everything else that seemed to change. She was there for school lunches, plays, homecoming, college, graduations and my wedding. Truly, she was a gift from God and I'm so thankful for the 29 years my life was blessed with her in it.

Tragically in 2005, Memaw was shockingly diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor and given less than six months to live. We savored every moment we had together with visits, calls, and heart-to-hearts I will never forget. Memaw was an avid writer and had many pen pals. A holiday never passed without one of her festive cards gracing my mailbox or just a letter detailing what was happening on the homefront. For my 29th birthday, I received my most prized letter from Memaw. The envelope adorned her notorious smiley stickers and sweet sayings as if it were no different from any letter she’d sent me. But, as I opened it, I knew that it was. It was her good bye, her final letter to me. She knew the tumor was growing and in time she would not be able to write at all, so she seized this opportunity to put on paper her final thoughts, advice and undying love for me in one very special letter.

For 20 minutes I read her recap of our past 29 years together as one of the closest grandmother/granddaughter relationships I’ve ever known. She talked about my childhood all the way up to my wedding day and beyond. She gave me life advice for my future and ended the letter – my last letter from her with, “Continue to live God’s way and He’ll bless you. Wear your seatbelt and know your notes, letters and cards are kept in a special place. Love you darling, Memaw” In the days following her death, I found her “special place” in a dresser drawer—it was a box containing every letter I’d written her from the time I was 2 years old.

Now, let me explain the quilt picture above. Two days before Memaw passed away peacefully at the Hospice House, I was looking through drawers in her home just to hold on to anything that was hers. It was then I found a bag with blue quilt squares with different images quilted on each one. All it needed was to be sewn together for completion and I knew exactly what it was. Memaw had started a baby blanket for me and it was for a baby boy!!! It was a project she knew she would never finish before she passed away, but she got as far as she could. By this point Memaw was breathing heavily and not responding (talking, etc...). Yet, during my visit with her the next day when I whispered to her that I found the blanket and I would make sure my mom finished it on her behalf I noticed that she paused in her breathing as if she were intently taking in my every word. I'm so glad I was able to let her know I found her priceless treasure.

Today, my mom brought me the final precious product seen above. It is so neat that she was able to finish where Memaw left off and "peanut" will always know the love that was put into his blanket from both Memaw and my mom. Of course I've shed more than a few tears looking at the blanket knowing how proud Memaw would be of it. I cannot wait to wrap him up in the blanket at the hospital and know that a piece of my grandmother is there with us!

Different Shower, Same Dress

My mom the lovely hostess...

Dolly has now officially been at all of my baby showers--what a trooper


Dolly, it's okay that you love shower food!

A few of my aunts and cousins...

Yummy cake!




This past weekend my mom threw me a family shower. It was so nice to visit with my aunts, cousins and grandmother all the while indulging in yummy shower food. We had a nice afternoon and I received a lot of nice gifts. Dolly and Leland were going to fly out of Raleigh on Sunday morning so they spent Saturday night with us. They made it for the tail end of the shower which was fun. This was my last shower, so now we just wait for this little guy to make his grand entrance! Oh, and I am wearing the same dress as my last shower a week ago...I mean I have 5 1/2 weeks left so I'm not investing in more maternity clothes!

Baby Shower

Here are the two proud grandma's!

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Some of the guests...

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Dolly was so sweet to come down from VA to be at my shower.

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Heather, Amy, Merritt and Jessica--the shower planning girls (oh, and Amanda but she is on her way home from South Africa). They made everything so nice for my shower. I loved everything about it!

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My friend Jenna made the awesome cake...obviously mom and peanut loved it!

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Somehow Brian always manages to make it to the tail end of the showers and usually is caught around the food table.

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Jenna's cake creation...pound cake with raspberries and cream cheese frosting!

This past weekend I had a baby shower hosted by some of my close friends here in Raleigh. I was blown away with all the details that made it so special. It was a 1:00pm luncheon and the food was incredible...I've never seen such a spread!! Luckily I went home with a lot of the extras so I'm still reaping the rewards of their cooking abilities. The decorations were so cute and classy too. They even had my favorite flowers, blue hydrangeas, displayed in teapots around Jessica's house. The favors were adorable little personalized tea boxes. I loved all the games, the guests, the food and the gifts! I felt so loved and overwhelmed with everyone's generosity and the time/effort the girls put into my shower. Thank you so much!!

Peanut has a real nursery!

Finally, our little guy has a room that is almost complete. For all who know my husband, the theme is obvious---GOLF. We had fun getting his room all ready and we were very happy with how the golf painting turned out. She also put little bees over the windows because our bedding has bees on it (golf bedding is non-existent!). Be on the lookout for a new post about peanut's shower!